Beliefs

The Word of God

We believe that the Bible, comprised of the Old and New Testaments, is God's Word; that God gave it without error in the original autographs; that it alone is the sufficient source of authority for all belief and practice.

God

We believe in one Personal God who is all-powerful, all-knowing, everywhere present and never changing. We believe God exists in three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. We believe that He is the Creator of all that there is. We believe that He is the architect of the plan to redeem fallen humanity to Himself through the Man Jesus.

Jesus Christ

We believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is fully God and yet fully Man, and that no one comes to the Father but by Him. We believe that His death was a vicarious atonement for sin that is sufficient for all people. We believe that Jesus literally rose again from the realm of the dead and that He has ascended to the right hand of the Father. We believe that He intercedes for believers. We believe that He is the source of life of the New Creation, and that it is the Father’s plan to “unite all things in Him.”

The Holy Spirit

We believe the Holy Spirit is a member of the Triune Godhead, that He is a Person, and that He effects the Father’s plan in this world by glorifying Jesus Christ and directing people to Him. We believe that the Spirit must work in a person for that person to confess Jesus as Lord. We believe that the normal life of the Christian is energized by the Spirit. We believe that the work of the Spirit is not carried out by and does not result in confusion or chaos. We believe that the Spirit and the Bible work together to communicate the truth of Christ to people.

People

We believe that God created people in His image to worship Him, enjoy Him, and be His representatives on the earth. We believe that Adam and Eve are our original parents and that their sin has stained the entire human race. We believe that all people are sinners depraved in all aspects of their being and are unable to save themselves from sin or the wages of sin which is death.

Salvation

We believe that salvation is by God’s grace through faith alone in Christ alone. We believe that Jesus Christ is the Savior of all who call upon Him as Lord. We believe that His death was an atonement for sin. We believe that His death turned away the wrath of God. We believe that Jesus’ resurrection began the New Creation. We believe that a person regenerated by the Holy Spirit is saved for eternity.

Sanctification and Christian Conduct

We believe that Christian growth comes through trusting obedience in Christ as the Spirit of God uses the Word of God to make us like the Son of God for the glory of God. We believe that Christians should live for the glory of God and the well being of others; that their conduct should be blameless before the world; that they should be faithful stewards of their possessions; and that they should seek to realize for themselves and others the full stature of maturity in Christ.

The Church

We believe in the universal church, a living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and all regenerated persons are members. We believe in the local church, consisting of a group of professing believers in Jesus Christ, baptized on a credible profession of faith, and organized for worship, work, and fellowship. We believe that God has laid upon the members of the local church the tasks of glorifying Himself through unified commitment to one another and making followers of Jesus Christ among all nations.

The Ordinances

We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has committed two ordinances to the local church: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. We believe that Christian baptism, in the name of the triune God, signifies our death to sin and resurrection to a new life. We believe that the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Christ in order to remember that His death has made us into a unified people of God. We believe that these two ordinances should be observed and administered until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Love

We believe that we should live under the law of Christ, which is to love one another. We are to deal graciously, gently, patiently, and humbly with one another. We are to seek the good and peace of one another, to bear one another’s burdens, and to pray for the physical and spiritual health of one another.

The Last Things

We believe in the personal, visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth and the establishment of His Kingdom. We believe that all nations will acknowledge Him as King. We believe that He will change the bodies of His people into bodies like His glorious body and that He will bring His people into glory.